The recovery of public sector accounting as a site of possibility: publicness and localized-led development

As public sector accounting stands at a momentous historical juncture, this editorial introduces a special issue of Financial Accountability and Management that reimagines public sector accounting in the wake of New Public Management's (NPM) limitations. Confronting crises of governance, legitimacy, and representation, we propose two generative analytical anchors—publicness and localized-led development—to challenge dominant managerial logics and reorient accounting toward more democratic, situated, and socially responsive practices. Publicness is reconceptualized as a dynamic, contested space shaped by accounting technologies, civic engagement, and political struggle. Localized-led development foregrounds the agency of place-based actors and vernacular knowledge in resisting technocratic reforms and enabling contextually grounded governance. The issue features five empirical studies spanning student unions in Australia, municipal services in Turkey, environmental activism in Malaysia, infrastructure failure in Latin America, and peacebuilding in Palestine. Together, they illuminate how accounting mediates between global reform discourses and local governance realities, functioning both as a disciplinary tool and a potential site of transformation. We argue that public sector accounting must move beyond critique and engage in reconstructive scholarship that values pluralism, participatory accountability, and care ethics. By foregrounding the political, cultural, and ethical dimensions of accounting, this issue offers a critical path forward for scholars and practitioners seeking to reclaim public sector accounting as a force for public value, justice, and sustainable development.